The Denver Nuggets have been lucky to have the best basketball player in the world on their roster for the duration of his career. Over the past six seasons, Nikola Jokic has been at the top of his game, finishing either first or second in the MVP voting each year. But when Jokic hits the bench — the non-Jokic minutes, as they are now known as — the Nuggets are a much different team. Making a dent in the difference will be crucial to the team's ultimate ceiling. But new assistant coach Dave Joerger could help bridge the gap.
It's a huge gap to bridge. As Kevin O'Connor of the Kevin O'Connor Show points out, the gap doesn't improve much even with Jamal Murray on the court in a staggered setup of the two stars. Over the past five seasons, the Nuggets have had a +10.8 net rating with Jokic on the floor and a -7.5 net rating without him on the floor. With Murray on the court and Jokic off the court, it's still a dismal -5.8 net rating.
We know that Jokic elevates the players around him, and it was one of the key reasons he came out number one in the new ESPN Top-100 player rankings. But the Nuggets can close that gap this season thanks to the addition of new assistant coach Dave Joerger, who can instill better defense to try to bridge the gap.
Joerger can adapt a defensive scheme to the second unit
The Nuggets brought in Joerger to help with decisions and to give head coach David Adelman a seasoned voice to lean on. Joerger has nearly three decades of coaching experience, including six as an NBA head coach.
But the most important thing is that Joerger is a defensive specialist. He'll have his hands full overall with new addition DeMar DeRozan and Julian Strawther in the backcourt on the second unit. But defensive specialist Alpha Diallo could be the key to making a scheme come together that puts a dent in the non-Jokic minutes net rating gap this season.
Joerger has a track record of improving the defense, suggesting he can get the most from what the Nuggets have to work with. When he was handed the defensive keys by then-Memphis Grizzlies head coach Lionel Hollins, the Grizzlies showed steady improvement every year. 2009-10 saw the Grizzlies with a poor 109.9 and a 19th-place defensive rating. The year of the change, 2010-11, the Grizzlies improved to 9th at 105.1. By 2014-15, the Grizzlies were 3rd at 102.2.
Joerger improved the Philadelphia 76ers, too. In 2019-20, before his hiring as an assistant coach to Doc Rivers, the 76ers were ranked 8th with a 109.0 defensive rating. The following season, he helped them improve to 2nd at 107.6.
If there's a way to improve the defense through scheming for the Nuggets' second unit to close the gap on the non-Jokic minutes, they've found their guy to do it. And if he succeeds, Joerger could very well be one of the best moves of the Nuggets' offseason.
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